


Paint Stained Roses

by ParadoxProphet



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Ancestors, F/M, Slavery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-07-26
Updated: 2014-07-30
Packaged: 2018-01-08 21:01:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1137355
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ParadoxProphet/pseuds/ParadoxProphet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She's a runnaway with secrets and nowhere to hide. Though an act of kindness from someone else may just be the thing to save her life, even if it's from someone she may not want it from.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay I started this in 2012 but have not yet had the chance to update it. This is meant to tell the story of the ancestor of one of my fantrolls, so yeah expect that.

She had no idea how far she had currently ran, but the tired young woman knew that she couldn't stop her. Not until she could find shelter. She looked through the forrest, weapon in hand in case she ran into any hostile wildlife, for anything that she could use as a shelter. The sound of nearby footsteps made her flinch. Someone else was in these woods as well. She had to keep moving, lest she became caught. She ran for a while before stopping for a moment to catch her breath. She figured that she was at least far enough in order to take a quick breather. Just as she was ready to get moving once again, she felt a sudden, sharp pain in her side. She made a yell in pain as she fell to her knees. She looked at the damage, finding an arrow lodged in her side with blood beginning to drip out. Her vision began getting blurry as she tried to remove the arrow. As she pulled it out, she noticed a figure coming towards her. Unable to see just who it was she assumed it was her pursuer; here to take her back in. She wasn't about to have any of that though. Not without a fight.

"6tay back, highblood!" the injured and tired woman yelled, staring at the man coming towards her. "I'm warning you! I'm 6till armed! Don't think that I can't fight you 6imply...becau6e I'm...injured..." Unable to stay conscious, the woman fell to the ground without a fight, exposing her bleeding wound. The man, no longer faced with any threat, walked over to her in order to inspect the damage.

The exposed wound was the fist thing he noticed. The color of the blood trickling out was turquoise, an unusual blood color for a woman dressed as a slave. All over her arms were cuts of various sizes ranging from large and small. on her left cheek were three scratch marks that had been recently made. Whoever she had been a slave to had beaten her often. Even though he should've left her there to die, the man took her into his arms and brought her to his hive. After all, his questions would never be answered if she died.

\---------------------------------------

Finally regaining consciousness, the woman sat back up and tried to regain her thoughts. Last she had remembered, she had been running from someone. Her memories were still fuzzy, but she was sure they would return to her in time. She figured it would be best to figure out where she was.

From the look of things, she appeared to be inside a respite block of someone's hive. She didn't recognize the surroundings, which eliminated to possibility of being back in her hive. Due to the lack of a recuperacoon, it had to have been the hive of an adult. She tried searching for a bed before realizing that she was sitting on top of it. She began to inspect her person for any sign of damage when someone entered, shocked by her awakening.

"D--> So, you have finally awakened. I had begun to think that it was too late for you." a masculine sounding voice spoke. The woman stared at the newcomer, trying to get a good look at whoever had found her. Standing in the entrance was a muscular male troll with arrow-like horns similar to her own. His eyes were hidden behind some kind of custom made headgear and she couldn't locate his symbol, making it impossible to figure out his blood color. Along with the headgear, he wore cybernetic looking armor that she assumed was custom as well. His hair was quite long, unusual for a man like him. "D--> Is everything alright, miss..." he spoke, asking for her name.

"Blankeye," the woman answered. "My name i6 Blankeye. And thing6 are indeed fine. There i6 no need for your concern."

"D--> So then, miss Blankeye, I take it that means your wounds have healed?" the man asked. "D--> I did the best I could do without removing your garments."

Blankeye froze in thought for a moment. She looked over at the wound on her side, noticing it was covered in bandages. Her arms had minimal scars, the one that remained were barely visible. She looked back at the man. "You healed my injurie6?" she asked. The man silently nodded. "But why? Anyone el6e would have let me die. What rea6on would you have to help me?"

The man did not give an immediate reply. When he finally did, he wouldn't look at her. "D--> Curiosity. The state I had found you in perple%ed me. If I had not attended to your condition, I would not be able to obtain the answers I seek."

"...Fair enough." Blankeye said. "However, I have a que6tion for you."

"D--> And that would be?"

"What do I call you?" she asked. "You know what my name i6, yet I do not know your6."

"D--> Darkleer. You may call me Darkleer, miss Blankeye." he answered.

"Well then, Darkleer, thank you for 6aving me out there," Blankeye said. "You may a6k me any que6tion you may have."

"D--> I had noticed while treating that wound on your side that your b100d was turquoise, a color not usually found on a slave. So why are you dressed as one?" Darkleer asked.

Blankeye turned her head downwards, as if a nerve had been struck. She did not speak, thinking just how to answer his question. Finally, she looked back up and began to speak. "That'6 a long 6tory.

"My full title wa6 once Counte66 Blankeye. I wa6 a well known arti6an, receiving order6 from even the mo6t elite troll6. I would take on any challenge that wa6 thrown at me. Eventually, I ended up grabbing the attention of the Grand Highblood him6elf. He approached me per6onally, offering a large 6um of money, and demanded that I take hi6 order. At the time, I already had many order6 I had to fini6h, 6o I told him I would have to place him on a waiting li6t until I fini6hed 6ome of my previou6 project6. That wa6 a huge mi6take.

"He wa6 furiou6 at me. He thought I had defied him by hot taking the order right away. I tried to explain my rea6on6, but he ju6t 6aw it a6 'lowblood defiance' and threatened to 6ubjuggulate me right there. Then hi6 mate6pirit intervened.

"The Coure6an 6tepped in, and provided him with a better alternative. In6tead of killing a 'talented arti6t', it would be better to keep me for them6elve6. That way I would be able to take any order without que6tion, and they would have a 6upply of turquoi6e paint for their own work if they need it. The Grand Highblood 6eemed to prefer that 6ugge66tion, and I was taken away before I had the chance to 6ay anything.

"I wa6 6tripped of my title and placed in 6lave garment6. The Courte6an treated me like filth, u6ing me a6 more of a per6onal 6lave. Day after day 6he would make me do un6avory thing6, beating me for her entertainment. Every now and then I would be cut open for my blood a6 well. Eventually, I refu6ed to take it anymore. When 6he wa6n't looking, I managed to e6cape the 6ubjugglator fortre66 and ju6t kept running. I knew they would be 6earching for me 6oon enough, 6o returning to my own hive wa6 out of the que6tion. I did not care where I went, 6o long a6 I would be far away from tho6e vile highblood6. I wa6 6ucce66ful in my effort6 until I wa6 6hot by an arrow and blacked out. Then I managed to find my6elf in your hive.

"...Forgive me, I began to ramble on you. Doe6 that an6wer your que6tion, Darkleer?"

"D--> Yes, it definitely did," Darkleer answered. "D--> It has also answered a few of my other questions as well."

"I 6uppo6e you have more though." Blankeye guessed.

"D--> That is correct," Darkleer answered. "although they can wait for another day. I do not wish to overwhelm you with too many questions in one night."

"I mu6t 6ay Darkleer, you are quite the gentleman," Blankeye said. "Though I waonder, what will you do with me once I have an6wered all of your que6tion6?"

Darkleer did not say anything, pondering what he would do with the former artisan. "D--> You will remain here." Darkleer answered a moment later.

"...What?" Blankeye asked, confused as to why he would want her to stay here. "For what rea6on would you wi6h to keep a runaway here?"

"D--> As you said, you have nowhere else you can hide and you care not about where you go so long as you are far away from the...highb100ds. Thus, staying with me would be your best option." Darkleer clarified.

Blankeye said nothing, simply smiling at Darkleer. "You are fully aware of the concequence6 then?" she asked a while later. Darkleer nodded his head. "Very well then. Thank you for healing my wound6. I am in your debt." She looked down at her garments, noting that she would have to replace them at some point.

Darkleer looked at the long hair that blocked her eyes from view. "D--> You should move those bangs out of your face," Darkleer spoke up, moving closer to help her. "D--> You must be having a hard time being able to see through all of that."

"NO!" Blankeye shouted as she jumped back. "I-I mean, that i6 not ne66ecary. I can 6ee through it perfectly." she said, trying to remove any suspicion and regain her compossure.

Darkleer looked at her, perplexed by her strange burst of behavior. "D--> If you say so. I shall take my leave for now. Do call for me if you require anything, miss Blankeye." he said with a smile, trying to shrug off the odd reaction she had previously displayed.

"I 6hall 6ee you tomorrow then, Darkleer." Blankeye replied. She smiled back as she watched him go out the door. She decided that now would be the best time to get used to her new surroundings, since this was going to be her home from now on.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAHAHA IT TOOK ME WAY TOO LONG TO UPDATE THIS
> 
> Now watch as I don't update it for many months because I have shit to do.

Courtesan Tornveil looked at herself through the mirror of her respiteblock. Her encounter with the assassin just moments before had left her in a beat-up state. She kept pondering to herself on how the Contessa had even learned of how Blankeye had been brought here. She had been assured that when they had visited the artist's hive, no one had seen or heard anything when they had arrived or left. She couldn't think about the situation that much, as her head still throbbed in pain from the interrogation. All she could do was try to clean herself off and patch up her wounds. Her dress had been damaged, which meant she would also need to have someone fix it up for her. "Damn that Venomcowl woman." she said to her reflection. "If she hadn't taken me by surprise then I could have put her in her place."

Tornveil heard the door open behind her; she turned to see one of her Dancimators standing in the doorway, most likely to give her a report. "Forgive me for intruding Lady Tornveil, am I interrupting something?" the young woman asked.

Tornveil tried to hide her anger, she didn't care about the intrusion if it meant news and her ire was directed more at the events from earlier than at her subordinate. "No, you're not." she answered. "I was merely lost in my own thoughts."

"Um, I apologize for asking, but did something happen to you, my lady? You look dreadful, no offense." the Dancimator asked nervously. Tornveil figured that no one had seen the assassin enter or leave the building. They were all about stealth and hiding in shadows.

"It is nothing that you need worry about." Tornveil answered. "Everything has been taken care of. I assume that you are here because you have news of my slave's disappearance?"

"Ah, well..." the Dancimator began, unsure how she could explain things to her superior. "We were able to track her last location, but she's vanished. There's no trace of the turquoise blood."

Tornveil made no attempt to hide her disappointment. "And you figured this was important to tell me _why?_ " she asked.

"Well, that is, we know she was last seen in these woods," The Dancimator took out a map that had been marked with where Blankeye had last been spotted. "The Subjuggulators that were sent to retrieve her managed to find some of her blood on the ground, but that's it. For all we know, she could have collapsed and been eaten by a wild animal."

Tornveil looked over the map carefully. Just what was her slave thinking? Turquoise bloods weren't all that smart, she supposed. "Are there any hives or caves she could have possibly taken refuge in near this location?" she asked.

"We are not sure yet." the Dancimator answered. "We do know that one of the executioners has a hive not too far from where we found the blood, but we'll need a more extensive search before we can be sure."

"Tell me, what is the name of the executioner?" Tornveil asked.

"Darkleer, my lady." the Dancimator answered. Tornveil decided there was no reason to worry about him possibly protecting the runnaway. He was one of the empire's most loyal executioners, if he found an escaped slave he would turn them in immediately.

"In that case, search for any other hives or caves. Don't take any chances." Tornveil said. "And we are certain she did not return to her own hive or went to someone she could trust with hiding her?"

"We searched her hive and it has been untouched since you took her. As for acquaintances, Blankeye was very solitary aside from the people who paid her. And she never kept in touch once she finished her work for them. There is a possibility that she had one acquaintance, but we have no idea who they might possibly be. Any information we could find was very unspecific." the Dancimator said. Tornveil assumed that the acquaintance had to be the assassin that had come after her mere moments ago, and she had to beat the information out of the Courtesan in order to learn anything.

"Very well. There is one other thing I require you to do. I have reason to believe that a woman by the name of Contessa Venomcowl is the person Blankeye had contact with. I want you to try and keep an eye on her if possible. She is an assassin though, which will make it difficult to keep watch on her. However, if you see anything that could be considered suspicious about her behavior, then you will inform me immediately. Do I make myself clear?" Tornveil said.

The Dancimator bowed. "Yes, my lady. I will inform the Dancimators right away."

"Good, you are dismissed." Tornveil ordered. The Dancimator left and closed the door, leaving the highblood woman alone once again. She smirked, knowing that she would be able to find a way to reclaim her slave. By force if necessary. No one escaped from the Grand Highblood's fortress and lived to tell the tale, but Tornveil was willing to be merciful if she needed to be. If her slave came back to her with willingness then she would be willing to let her off easily. But if not, she would just have to eliminate her.

There was no need to bring the Grand Highblood into this mess. Even though she was flushed for him, she knew how reckless he could be. If he was involved then her slave would no doubt be killed. Thankfully the empress had called him out for some important business, so she could keep quiet about this. He had a lot on his hands, what with trying to capture that Signless. She had things under control. The forest would hold the answers. Even if that pitiless Blankeye was eaten, there was sure to be bones left. Tornveil would find her, even if it was just her corpse.


End file.
